THE Minister for Social Welfare has defended the Taoiseach against recent criticisms of his handling of the peace process by the Cork Examiner Irish Times journalist, Geraldine Kennedy and Emily O'Reilly from the Sunday Business Post.
Speaking in an interview on RTE Radio's News at One Mr De Rossa insisted the Taoiseach had shown himself to be "very sure footed and clear sighted indeed about what he is trying to achieve". This was to get all parties into talks, he said.
"He has said time and time again, you cannot coerce people to sit down and talk. You have to find a mechanism where nobody feels threatened by sitting down to talk to somebody else. Clearly, mistakes have been made on all sides ... But I think it's wrong to be critical off John Bruton in circumstances where it is extremely difficult to find a way forward."
Mr De Rossa said criticisms of Mr Bruton's performance were made in ignorance of behind the scenes processes between the British and Irish governments.
"I think it is wrong, particularly at this point in time, when the IRA have broken their ceasefire, that the leader of this country is being pilloried in this way. There is a space obviously for criticism of us all at various points in time.
"But I think we have to be concerned that we are on a very slippery slope here and that it is important that there is a democratic consensus which would get around the government of the day in dealing with what is a paramilitary organisation seeking to impose its views," he added.